CCBC-Net Archives
out of print book about gender roles
- Contemporary messages sorted: [ by date ] [ by subject ] [ by author ]
From: Mercado, Nancy <Nancy.Mercado>
Date: Fri, 22 Jul 2005 13:05:32 -0400
Amy's post reminded me of one of my favorite books from childhood, also set in the 70s, called THE SECRET IN MIRANDA'S CLOSET by Sheila Greenwald.
The book is about 11-year-old Miranda whose finds an antique doll and keeps it hidden in her closet lest her feminist mother find it. (Her mother is a sociologist who often appears on television bragging about how her daughter has never conformed with traditional gender roles...and how she only played with trucks when she was little!) What I remember loving so much about the book was how Miranda builds such an intricate world for her doll inside that closet...and how she has quite a few independent adventures (asking local shopkeepers for sample materials to use in her dollhouse) because of the doll. So, the thing that her mother viewed as so oppressive actually opens up all of these doors for Miranda and allows her to come "into her own" all the more...
The book is a great reminder that kids don't always fit neatly into our ideological mold.
I still have my old copy, but I'm pretty sure it's out of print. It would be a great one to track down!
Cheers, Nancy
__________________________ Nancy Mercado Editor Dial Books for Young Readers
Date: Tue, 19 Jul 2005 21:05:58 00 (PDT)
From: Amy Tsaykel
Subject: The Real Me
When I was about 9 years old, I picked up a book called The Real Me by Betty Miles at a yard sale. I must've read it 100 times. Set in the 70s, it very intentionally deals with gender at a time when the thrust of the women's movement had just settled down. Barbara, the main character, wants to pick up her brother's paper route, but state law won't allow it. (How could that have been so just 30 years ago?) The book revolves around her campaign to overturn the law. The topic was serious, I guess, but the book itself was hilariously funny. The book was probably 10 years old when I found it,and even at the time it seemed dated. But I still loved it. I've always wondered why this book isn't more classic. I guess there are other, more current gender issues at hand, and these days equality is just something we take for granted.
Amy Tsaykel
This email may contain confidential material. If you were not an intended recipient, please notify the sender and delete all copies. We may monitor email to and from our network.
Received on Fri 22 Jul 2005 12:05:32 PM CDT
Date: Fri, 22 Jul 2005 13:05:32 -0400
Amy's post reminded me of one of my favorite books from childhood, also set in the 70s, called THE SECRET IN MIRANDA'S CLOSET by Sheila Greenwald.
The book is about 11-year-old Miranda whose finds an antique doll and keeps it hidden in her closet lest her feminist mother find it. (Her mother is a sociologist who often appears on television bragging about how her daughter has never conformed with traditional gender roles...and how she only played with trucks when she was little!) What I remember loving so much about the book was how Miranda builds such an intricate world for her doll inside that closet...and how she has quite a few independent adventures (asking local shopkeepers for sample materials to use in her dollhouse) because of the doll. So, the thing that her mother viewed as so oppressive actually opens up all of these doors for Miranda and allows her to come "into her own" all the more...
The book is a great reminder that kids don't always fit neatly into our ideological mold.
I still have my old copy, but I'm pretty sure it's out of print. It would be a great one to track down!
Cheers, Nancy
__________________________ Nancy Mercado Editor Dial Books for Young Readers
Date: Tue, 19 Jul 2005 21:05:58 00 (PDT)
From: Amy Tsaykel
Subject: The Real Me
When I was about 9 years old, I picked up a book called The Real Me by Betty Miles at a yard sale. I must've read it 100 times. Set in the 70s, it very intentionally deals with gender at a time when the thrust of the women's movement had just settled down. Barbara, the main character, wants to pick up her brother's paper route, but state law won't allow it. (How could that have been so just 30 years ago?) The book revolves around her campaign to overturn the law. The topic was serious, I guess, but the book itself was hilariously funny. The book was probably 10 years old when I found it,and even at the time it seemed dated. But I still loved it. I've always wondered why this book isn't more classic. I guess there are other, more current gender issues at hand, and these days equality is just something we take for granted.
Amy Tsaykel
This email may contain confidential material. If you were not an intended recipient, please notify the sender and delete all copies. We may monitor email to and from our network.
Received on Fri 22 Jul 2005 12:05:32 PM CDT
